CURRENT TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 1 July 1915, Page 4

CURRENT TOPICS.

WHAT RKALLY MATTERS. Mr. Hilairo Jlelloc lately discussed tho (iei-man cll'ort. to break through the Allied line in .France, air effort, as is now known, that was in reality little more than a feint, because almost at once the big offensive, was launched, not in the western theatre, but in (htlieia. "No local successes." Mr. Jlelloc wrote, "no flattening of this salient, or recapturing of that position, no slight advance due to his last accession in num'bers, can benefit the enemy ai. all towards his'immediate and only useful end, which is simply the breaking of the Allied line. If lie does not breakthat line, he lias done nothing, and if his attempt t" ibreak through fails, then after it lias failed he will be in a worse position to meet the linal Allied offensive than he was before. Not only will he lie. weaker from losses, but be will know that he lias now no further reserves to put in the field during the summer.'' Mr. Belloc dwells on the necessity for a great success to secure, the enemy's standing politically, a point that may be remembered in connection with the fighting in (hiiicia, but it is the matter of numbers of men available that is of importance ju*t now. "Now. if we admit 800,000 as the maximum figure of men which (fermaiiy can train at any moment,'' Mr. lielloc continued, "it was to be expected that, in th--> course of the war, throe principal accessions of strength would be apparent in the forces of the (iernian Kmpire alone —exclusive of those of its ally. Upon the appearance of the third or these accessions of strength the last ell'ovf (if the enemy would have, been launched and no more to follow. In the face of the enormous losses which Germany has been snll'ering, this last accession of strength would not bring the enemy to anything like the superiority "which he. had over the. Allies during the. winter, but i; would provide an immediate increase | of stronglh available at Ibis or that ' striking point; the ell'eels of such a slid- ! deu reinforcement would be clear. If, is | "vident (bat we are now entering this period of the third and last accession of strength to the enemy. Tie i.- using a I Y"]-v considerable proper!ion of his new] slrength in Flnndei-s and upon other j points. . . . The enemy cannot bui play now for very high stakes, and a!obi.iin conditions ;;•; favorable as possible upon which to conclude v. hat he palls 'an honorable j>:-i,-,.* .fin! is, ; , draw, Hill by the very it.- of this, method he will, if he fails fo achieve his ohjeel. lied. hi,,Koi; -:„ ; ~],' wor.-e po-rioa after fliai tailor.' (■,.,,> before, for !.■ i- going fo ii.- what lie knows io b- Ins Vi-i re-erves, and he lias ab Here given back fo llucia. Al = o the I

maxims and the machine guns with which the Russian army is provided are for the, most part made in Russian factories'. .Moreover, Russia is by no means dependent for hand weapons on foreign countries. Above all, it is clear that Tiussia was in the position to make in her own factories the immense quantities of hand munition--, which have proved so necessary up to the present. But let no one forget that it is not only a question of providing her masses with these arms once and for all; immense reserves must be provided. .And, if it were ne. cessary iu peace time to recall an order of 500,000 rifles from abroad, Kussia must now more, than ever require munitions from outside." (POSITIOK IXi BTUTALV. An interesting note from tho same source on the position in Great Britain is worth quoting:—"Apart from the supply of munitions for the Xa.vy, one must say that at the. opening of the war England's capacity to make military munitions was not great. Apart from Tickers, which besides guns also made the machine guns called after Maxim, very few firms busied themselves with the manufacture! of military requirements. At the outbreak of war, besides clothes and otfher necessaries for mobilisation, the troops had to be provided as quickly as possible with weapons for their own hands. 'England always possessed the capacity to 'manufacture, arms in her own country. If there were only a few manufactories for the provision of military requirements, England had a' widespread industry iu the manufacture of sporting rifles, the centre, of which was .Birmingham, with branches in many other cities, such as Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh and ffiasgow. The business, however, had one drawback. A factory for the provision of sporting rides does not lend itself even in the most favorable circumstances to the provision of military requirements. The necessary changes in the machinery of the factories are important, and take time, and England will hardly be able before the summer of this year to produce military weapons in any {Treat number in her own country, because the unavoidable changes in technical matters can hardly lx' ellVctcd in less than a year. England, therefore, far more than Russia, was dependent on the provision of munitions of war from foreign countries. \Ve have every ground to believe tba the greater part of the rifles which America has ;-ent to Europe during the war were intended (or the English. Army."